Tuesday, September 4, 2018

Mike Haggith's New Album, Project 906 Updates, And Much More!!

For our first news post of this month, we're bringing back the postponed shorter stories from this past Friday with even more to spare! That said, leading off are stories from each side of the border, including a recent concert video and some major details on an upcoming album, so here's what you should know on this Tuesday morning!

Prolific local hard/alt-rock musician Mike Haggith unveiled lots of details regarding his 50th official solo album on his Facebook page yesterday, so what should you know about it? As previously hinted on his Bandcamp page, the album will be named "Bridges", and this is the album cover, taken from a Din photo shoot last year by local photographer Josh Pace. The album and same-named song derive their title from how bridges are both built to unite each other, even if they can be burned to divide people in other cases, as influenced by the relative isolation, social, and wellness issues Mike encounters in his current Thompson, Manitoba home base. "Bridges" will be engineered, mixed, and co-produced by Justin Sobey (frontman of the Thompson metal band Lionheart), who will also feature as a guest musician. Songs on the album will have a common personal theme, including
one newly confirmed track, entitled "Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost".

Mike says that "Bridges" is already fully recorded and will next enter the editing/mixing phase, while CD and digital releases are planned, plus a music video (or two), and some distribution to mental health organizations, though it's too soon for a release date to be confirmed. Finally, Mike shared the video below on Facebook on Friday featuring a 35 second studio sample of a raw studio track, which is a nice teaser for what's ahead! Though Mike never firmly publicized recording sessions until last week, he's maintaining his usual professional and well-planned recording process for his first solo album in three years! Be sure to follow the above links for all current details!

Next up, here's a new video of Sault Michigan hard/blues rock cover quartet Project 906 covering Foreigner's "Hot Blooded" at at The Back Bay Grill & Games at Bay Mills Resort & Casino in Brimley on Saturday! Filmed by attendee Cindi Jenkins and shared to their Facebook page on Sunday, This is a solid and well-filmed rendition of this rock radio classic, though Billy struggles a bit on the higher chorus notes. The big difference on this cover is that Paradise Excuse bassist Jason Haske (also of Oddfellow and Chump Change fame) filled in for an absent Dustin Paras on Saturday, which I apologize for missing on the site when originally announced. Jason's a talented musician with lots of regional experience, and he sounds good on this clip, so hopefully the rest of the set was similarly solid in that regard! Give Project 906's new video a look below, and stay tuned for more on Project 906 when it comes in!

Finally for today, here's six assorted shorter news stories from
the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist
name:

Former Griphook/Gsis Murphy drummer Anthony Fabiano is looking for
"young bands" to play at "an upcoming event" in Sault Ontario designed to help showcase
their material. Only two spots are open, though he didn't give details
on the location, format, further criteria, or potential stakes. If you're interested in trying out, message
Tony at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post from last week! As best as I can tell, this is not related to The Tech's ongoing "The Soo's Got Talent" auditions.

Former Bring the Fallen
guitarist Dan Souliere is looking for a singer, guitarist, bassist, and
drummer for his next planned musical project, as per his Musicians
Wanted Facebook group post on Sunday. Dan linked his most recent band
project Exploring Detritus
(f.k.a. Kaepora Gaebora) in the comments, but it's not clear if he
intends to revive that band or is just citing it as a recent example of
his music. It'd be great to see Dan back in an active metal band, and
there's already lots of interest, but if you want more details on this project, message
Dan at this link or above!

Local "no genre" trio Handsome Sandwich did not open for A Dire Setback at Room 21 late last month, and as far as I can tell, were not replaced on the bill. Bassist James White noted in a comment on the Facebook event page that he and guitarist Jesse Cook were going to be attending the Northern Vibe Festival in Ophir that same weekend, hence the scheduling conflict. While not advertised on official schedules, Jesse's acoustic band The Wyld Stallyns
actually performed at the festival as the hosts of the campfire jam
session, though a time and date was never publicized online. Hopefully
everything went well!

As outlined in Sunday's "Where Are The New Albums?" post, local solo metal musician Mike Vincent has begun work on his third studio album "For Dear Life", with it's first song "Nocturnal" posted in demo instrumental form to his Bandcamp page. Mike has indicated on his personal Facebook page that he is planning to include vocals on all but one track for the new album, but further public details are forthcoming. Nice to see Mike staying busy, so keep tabs above for more on his next solo album, and stream "Nocturnal" above!

Mik & Steve singer/guitarist & former Pixo Control bassist Steve Edwards is looking for a drummer towards a new band project that he's working on. He's seeking a drummer between 18 and 30, he already has guitar, bass, and vocals covered, original material is planned, and candidates must "be committed to practicing." For what it's worth, the lack of a drummer impaired his recent band Vol.'s final months, but I don't know whether or not the new band will have any direct relation to that group. There was some interest, but if you want more information, message Steve at this link or via his Musicians Wanted group post from Sunday!

Remember how Tym Morrison's Canada Day show at Room 21 saw him open for Australian musician Steve Lane, despite Tym not advertising the headline act and the venue not advertising Tym on the shows' respective Facebook event pages? Well, it happened again this past Saturday, as Tym didn't mention in his own advertising that he opened for Toronto soul/R&B artist Mattie Leon that night, and vice versa for the venue not mentioning Tym. Apologies again for missing that, but hopefully the concert went well! Also, Friday's Tym Morrison concert there was indeed a Fishbowl Friday-themed event.

That's all for today, but stay tuned for this weekend's concert previews on the site next, in all likelihood! Thanks everyone!